Self-drive: Namibian Beauties

DAY 1: WINDHOEK - OKAHANDJA
Arrival in Windhoek, pick-up by automatic car at the rental office and drive for about 1 hour (73km) to Okahandja. Accommodation for 1 night, with breakfast and dinner.

Optional activity suggestion (not included):

• Visit to the handicraft market with wood carvings in Okahandja.

Day 2: OKAHANDJA - ETOSHA NATIONAL PARK
After breakfast and check-out. Drive for about 3 hours (342 km) to Etosha National Park for the first safari with your vehicle (entrance fee to be paid locally).

Etosha National Park is one of the largest parks in Africa. Etosha owes its unique landscape to the basin of a generally dry lake of approximately 5000 km² and was named the first conservation area in Namibia in 1907 by the then German government. Of the 114 mammal species found in the park, several are quite particular to this region and are threatened with extinction, such as the black rhinoceros, the cheetah, and the black-faced impala.

Accommodation for 2 nights at Bushara Bush Camp, with breakfast and dinner.


DAY 3: ETOSHA NATIONAL PARK
Breakfast at the lodge and full-day safari through Etosha National Park, with your own vehicle (entrance fee to be paid locally). Return and dinner at the lodge.

Optional activity suggestion (not included):

• Guided safari in Etosha National Park.

DAY 4: ETOSHA NATIONAL PARK
Breakfast and check-out at the lodge. Full-day safari through Etosha National Park, with your own vehicle (entrance fee to be paid locally). Accommodation for 1 night at Etosha Taleni, with breakfast and dinner.


DAY 5: ETOSHA NATIONAL PARK - GROOTBERG
After breakfast and check-out, drive towards Grootberg. The approximately 260 km journey takes between 5 hours and 30 minutes, with stops along the way. Along the way, you can visit the Himba, the mythical tribe that only inhabits Namibia. Here you can get information about the lifestyle and culture of these semi-nomadic desert people.

Arrival in Grootberg and accommodation for 1 night, with breakfast and dinner.


DAY 6: GROOTBERG - TWYFELFONTEIN
Breakfast and check-out at the lodge. Drive for about 2 hours and 3 minutes (130 km) to Twyfelfontein for accommodation for 1 night, with breakfast and dinner.

In the afternoon, departure for regular safari in a 4x4 car offered by the lodge itself, to search for desert elephants.

Desert elephants are adapted to arid conditions and are restricted to Namibia and Mali. With an estimated population of 250-325 in Damaraland and Kaokoland, they travel long distances in search of water and food. During the rains, they migrate north before returning. Its unique behavior and migration is considered a spectacle amidst desert landscapes.

Return and dinner at the lodge.


DAY 7: TWYFELFONTEIN -
SWAKOPMUND Breakfast and check-out. Drive for about 3 to 4 hours (330 km) to Swakopmund, one of the country's most famous coastal vacation destinations.

Swakopmund is a former German colony. With a mix of German and Namibian influences, the city is marked by colonial-era buildings.

Suggested optional activities (not included):

• Tour to see the Twyfelfontein cave paintings that, up to 6000 years old, are considered to be the largest rock art exhibition in Africa. Possibility to stop at the organ tubes (admission to be paid on site) and the scorched mountain, which are located nearby.
• Stop in Uis, a mining village, where you can have the opportunity to observe Brandberg, the highest peak in Namibia.
  
  

Accommodation in Swakopmund for 2 nights, with breakfast.


DAY 8: SWAKOPMUND Breakfast
. Free day for independent activities.


DAY 9: SWAKOPMUND - SESRIEM
Breakfast and check-out at the hotel. Journey to the Kuiseb Canyon, an important river in Namibia, crossing the Namib-Naukluft National Park towards Sesriem. Accommodation at Desert Quiver Camp for 2 nights, with breakfast and dinner at Sossusvlei Lodge.

Located in the Namib-Naukluft National Park, Sossusvlei is an area of red dunes in the Namibian Desert, known for its high dunes, some of the highest in the world. The region is famous for the intense colors of the dunes, especially during sunrise and sunset.

In the evening, dine at Sossusvlei Lodge.


DAY 10: SESRIEM - SOSSUVLEI - DEADVLEI - SESRIEM
After breakfast at the Sossusvlei Lodge, travel early for about 150 km to Sossusvlei and Deadvlei (entrance fee to be paid on site), where you have the opportunity to climb a dune that offers a panoramic view of the place. Possibility to visit the Sesriem Canyon, which reaches a depth of 30 meters.

Return to Desert Quiver Camp and dinner at Sossusvlei Lodge.


Day 11: SESRIEM - WINDHOEK
Breakfast at Sossusvlei Lodge and check out. Departure to Windhoek, on a trip of about 6 hours (360 km), and return of the rental car. Then, regular transfer with an English-speaking driver to the international airport to await the flight.

Note: It is recommended to add an extra night in Windhoek before your flight.